Young girls aged 17 and under are increasingly likely to be prescribed antidepressants in Quebec, a 62% increase in just five years.
“If you don’t have access [la psychothérapie]They still have access to pills, notes psychiatrist Karine Igartua. This is one of the solutions we have. Is it the best It depends on the person, but it is the only one whose access is uniform thanks to the public plan.
The Montreal General Hospital doctor is not surprised that the number of Quebecers taking antidepressants is increasing. According to the latest data from the Régie de l’assurance maladie du Québec (RAMQ), there were more than 615,000 last year.
That’s 20% more for five years, and the increase is even more pronounced among young girls (see table).
“We’ve collectively adopted habits that aren’t good for our brains,” believes Dr. Igartua to explain this increase in burden. She blames smartphones in particular, which require constant attention and which many people hold in their hands into the bathroom or in the middle of the night.
And she says teenage girls are particularly vulnerable to harmful comparisons on social media.
Rather endangered
Adolescent medicine pediatrician at CHU Sainte-Justine, Olivier Jamoulle, claims that several studies confirm that adolescent girls are more likely to suffer from anxiety or depression.
The doctor adds that he has seen an “impressive increase in eating disorders” in his practice.
If we shouldn’t demonize the use of antidepressants, Dr. Jamoulle that the RAMQ data in Quebec requires “a moment to think”.
education needed
These drugs can be helpful and safe, he says, but prescribing them for a teenager needs careful consideration. On the other hand, he also notes that antidepressants are more widely available in Quebec than, for example, in Europe.
Doctors are campaigning for more mental health education for young people to learn how to manage stress.
“To be healthy, the brain needs eight hours of sleep. You have to move and have a sense of community, of belonging,” argues Dr. Igartua again.
The RAMQ paid out nearly $104 million in total for antidepressant drugs in 2022.
Two years to see a psychiatrist despite major depression
Martine Vendette, who suffered from major depression at the age of 20, had access to antidepressants but she had to wait two years to see a psychologist.
“If you drown, it’s a life saver. It gets you out of the water, but it doesn’t teach you to swim,” says the 27-year-old, emphasizing the importance of psychotherapy.
Despite the medication, for example, she remained unemployed for two years. If antidepressants can produce a “recovery,” you still need to know what to do with them, she continues.
Today she is the moderator of the Fondation Jeunes en tête and takes part in awareness-raising workshops in schools to equip young people and prevent hardship.
boy “damaged”
She notes that after three years of the pandemic, they are “crushed.” “Young people want help, but there isn’t enough,” she says.
“It is certain that there is an emergency at the moment and we must find a way as a society to respond,” adds the Foundation’s Director General, Mélanie Boucher. In the past year, about 220,000 people have accessed his organization’s online help kits.
However, Ms. Boucher emphasizes that they are not a substitute for professional help.
More prevention
She pleads for more prevention among young people, especially to help them earlier and avoid ending up on waiting lists.
Because the causes of fear add up, says Myriam Day Asselin, director of innovation and development at Tel-jeunes. The calls that the organization receives are no longer about a single problem, but about a whole spectrum.
Photo provided by Tel-Jeunes
Myriam Day Asselin, Director of Innovation and Development at Tel-jeunes
She names performance anxiety at school because of good grades, the stress of first love experiences or eco-anxiety in connection with global warming.
Not to mention the difficult events in the news, she continues. “They’re also bombarded by social media and very aware of what’s happening,” she exemplifies.
For five years
Number of people using antidepressants under the Quebec public plan
Girls under 17 years old
- 2018: 3423
- 2022: 5528
- 62% increase
Females 18 to 64
- 2018: 171,210
- 2022: 185,642
- 8% increase
Seniors over 65
- 2018: 168,798
- 2022: 217,842
- 29% increase
Boys 17 and under
- 2018: 2064
- 2022: 2665
- 29% increase
Men aged 18 to 64 years
- 2018: 94,387
- 2022: 101,896
- 8% increase
Seniors over 65
- 2018: 75,104
- 2022: 102,342
- 36% increase
Source: RAMQ
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